Valve-gear.



PATENTED AUG. 16, 1904.

G. W. SPRAGINS.

VALVE GEAR.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 30, 1904.

N0 MODEL.

. Rttorneqs UNITED STATES Patented August 16, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

VALVE-GEAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 767,505, dated August 16, 1904.

Application filed March 30, 1904.

To all who! 7'1; may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE \VILL SPRAGINS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Grand Island, in the county of Hall and State of Nebraska, have invented a new and useful Valve-Gear, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to certain improvements in valve-gear for locomotives and steamengines in general.

The principal object of the invention is to simplify the link valve-gearing commonly used on locomotives and other engines and by dispensing with the usual eccentrics, rocker-shaft, rocker-arms, and other intermediate connections reduce the cost of the valve-gearing and the weight of the engine, as well as doing away with considerable friction at present existing in ordinary valvegearing where eccentrics are used.

A further object of the invention is to place all parts of the valve-gearing outside the drivers in position where they may be constantly in view, so that the engineer may instantly observe any defect, and at the same time the parts will be accessible and in convenient position for making any necessary repairs and for adjusting and lubricating purposes.

\Vith these and other objects in View, as will more fully hereinafter appear, the invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that various changes in the form, proportions, size, and minor details of the structure may be made -without departing from the spirit or sacrificmg any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a machine illustrating the application thereto of a valvegear constructed in accordance with the invention. Fig. 2 is a detail view of a portion of the same on an enlarged scale. Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view of a portion of the mechanism, showing particularly the means for supporting the slide-bar. Fig. 4 is a per- Serial No. 200,813. (No model.)

spective view of the slide-bar supporting and guiding devices detached.

Similar numerals of reference are employed to indicate corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

The valve-gear is intended for use in connection with steam-engines of any class, but is adapted particularly for locomotives where link-motions are universally employed.

The construction of the locomotive proper is not changed in any respect, and the valverod 2, tumbling shaft 3, and reversing-rod 1 are all of the usual construction.

The link 5 is of the ordinary construction, its pivotal connection with the reversinggear being by the usual saddle. The linkblock 7 which may be-of the ordinary construction, is connected directly to the valve-. rod 2 and transmits the movement of the link directly to the valve instead of through the usual rocker-shaft, rocker-arms, and like con-. nections that are ordinarly employed and are necessary, especially in locomotives, where the brakes are usually under the boiler and the valve-rods outside the drivers.

To a portion of theframe of the engineis secured a block 10, having an approximately central opening for the reception of a pivotstud 11, which carries a box or sleeve 12, adapted to receive a slidable bar 15, the lower end of which fits over the main rod16, the length of the bar being sufiicient to insure its connection with the box or sleeve at all times during the rotative movement of the driver, and owing to the rotative movement of the driver the box or sleeve will be moved to varying angular positions that will to some extent correspond to the movement of an eccentric. The outer wall of the box or sleeve is continued outward in the form of an arcuate plate 17, having an arcuate slot through-which extend bolts that are connected to rods 18 and 19, crossing each other, the rods being adjustably connected to pivot-lugs 20 and 21, respectively, that project from the rear face of the link, and the connections of both ends of the rods are adjustable in order that the extent of movement imparted to the link may be properly regulatec. I

Y In the operation of the device if the link is down, with the link-block near the upper end of the link, and the engine is runningforward the connecting-rod 18 will exercise little or no effect on the link, and the connection will be similar to that of the connection between the lower end of the link and the backing eccentric in the ordinary link connection. The opposite rod 19 will impart movement to the link and from thence to the valve-rod direct. When the engine is to be reversed, the engineer operates his reversing-lever in the usual manner and shifts the link, whereupon the connecting-rod 19 becomes more or less ineffective, and the rod 18 transmits the principal movement to the valve.

The principal advantages gained with a valve-gear ot' the character forming the subject of the present invention are that the cost of construction and the weight of the engine are materially reduced, friction is minimized, and all of the parts are exposed and constantly in view, so that the engineer may ascertain at a glance it all of the parts are working properly. Being outside the running-gear,

the parts are not affected by the heat from the boiler and will require less lubrication, and at the same time are conveniently accessible for examination and repairs, and the wear of the plates and cost of maintenance will be materially reduced.

While the val\"e-gear has been described more especially in connection with locomotives, it is to be understood that it may be used on traction or other steam engines and the main operating-bar 15 may be connected to any movable member by which rocking movement may be imparted to the box or sleeve 12-as, for instance, the cross-head pin or any other suitable movable member of the engine.

Having thus described the invention, What is claimed is 1. In a valvegear, a pivotally-mounted sleeve having a guide, a bar slidably mounted in the sleeve and connected to a movable portion of the engine, a segment carried by the sleeve, a link, a pair of crossed rods connecting the segment to the link, a link-block, and means for connecting the same to the valvestem.

2. In a valve-gear, a pivotally-mounted sleeve, a segment carried thereby and provided with an arcuate slot, a link, a pair of crossed rods extending between the slotted portion of the segment and the link, a linkblock connected to the valve-stem, and a bar slidably mounted in the sleeve and connected to a movable portion of the engine.

3. In a locomotive valve-gear, a driver, a crank-pin on the driver, a pivotally-mounted sleeve, a bar slidably mounted therein and, connected to the crank-pin, a link connected to the valve-stem, and means for connecting the sleeve to the link.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

GEORGE WILL SPRAG-INS.

W itnesses:

LEWIS S. MOORE, T. O. C. HARRISON. 

